Chapter 311

Vinchel’s hand moved swiftly.

He controlled five swords with his hand.

The swords, imbued with aura, shot upwards.

An attack aimed at Max.

It was to prevent him from interfering with his movements with arrows, like he had done before.

‘You want to keep me occupied?’

Max immediately understood his intention.

He quickly fired three arrows before lowering his bow to block the incoming attack.

*Twang! Twang! Twang!*

Three sounds.

But strangely, Max’s hand fired one more arrow.

The Silent Shot, one of Hiresia’s secret techniques.

The very technique that had even troubled Natasha, the best swordswoman of Red Rain.

*Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!*

Three arrows flew towards Vinchel.

But Vinchel didn’t even flinch.

He had dodged hastily before because he had been in midair, but now that his feet were firmly planted on the ground, such arrows were no threat to him.

“Hmph, pathetic.”

Vinchel moved three of his remaining swords to intercept the arrows.

*Clang! Clang!*

Two arrows were cleanly cut in half.

But,

One of his swords sliced through empty air.

“Huh?”

Vinchel’s expression changed.

He had missed a strike that he couldn’t possibly miss.

But he soon realized why.

“Different speeds?”

There was no reason for arrows fired from the same bow by the same person to have different speeds.

But the speed of two arrows was clearly different from the speed of the other arrow.

That’s why his Sword Control Technique had missed.

It was the Transformation Arrow, one of Hiresia’s secret techniques.

Max had mixed in a Transformation Arrow.

“You dare to use such tricks!”

Enraged, Vinchel decided to cut down the last arrow himself.

*Slash!*

That should have been the end of it.

But,

“What?!”

This time, Vinchel let out a gasp of surprise.

Another arrow was hidden behind the arrow he had just cut down.

It had followed the same trajectory, silently, so even Vinchel, the Sword Saint, hadn’t noticed it.

He didn’t have time to move his sword again.

He hurriedly dodged.

*Whoosh!*

The arrow grazed his neck, leaving a shallow cut.

It was the first time in a long time that Vinchel had been injured.

A thin line of blood trickled down his neck.

Vinchel straightened up, his body trembling.

He was furious.

Another humiliation.

He had another reason to kill Max.

He was about to jump when,

“Hmm?”

He suddenly frowned, his eyes filled with confusion.

He sensed a change in his body.

A negative change.

Was it because of the wound?

No, it couldn’t be.

It was just a scratch.

Then it meant…

“Poison… It’s poison! You venomous little brat!”

Vinchel mistakenly thought he had been poisoned.

It was understandable.

He had never experienced anything like Marcus’s Bow’s curse.

Normally, he would have suffered a serious blow from the curse, but his superhuman resistance had mitigated the effects.

He had mistaken the symptoms for poison.

He had a high resistance to poison, so he thought it was the effect of a potent poison.

“You bastard!”

*Boom!*

He finally jumped.

This time, there wouldn’t be any problems.

Because his five swords were keeping Max occupied.

As he had expected, Max was busy blocking his five swords.

“Is that all you can do, old man?!”

Max taunted him, pretending to be relaxed, as he blocked the Sword Control Technique with the Form of the Destructive Slash.

He was clearly struggling against Vinchel’s overwhelming power.

He had to use every trick he had.

Provoking him was one of them.

Vinchel might have a high level of mental fortitude, being the Sword Saint, but Max knew that he was frustrated, having been repeatedly outsmarted by a young brat.

And he had just suffered two humiliating setbacks.

“You insolent little brat!”

Max’s taunts were very effective.

Vinchel, his eyes filled with murderous intent, was about to jump onto the walls, using his swords as footholds, like he had done before.

Max couldn’t stop him.

It seemed like Vinchel’s plan would finally succeed.

At that moment,

*Whoosh!*

The large ballista fired.

An orichalcum arrow shot towards Vinchel with lightning speed.

Even the Sword Saint would suffer a fatal wound if he was hit by an arrow of that power.

“Ugh?!”

Vinchel, startled, chose to jump back down to the ground.

It looked like another clumsy fall to the onlookers.

The Celtrine forces’ morale soared, while the Crown Prince’s army’s morale plummeted.

“Woohoo!”

“Young Master Max has driven back the old man again!”

“Come at us, Sword Saint or Sword Loser!”

“Hahaha!”

The Celtrine forces’ psychological warfare.

It was shaking the morale of not just Vinchel, but the entire Crown Prince’s army.

Max’s plan was working perfectly.

Vinchel clenched his fists, his face grim.

He knew.

That he had to turn the situation around.

And to do that, he had to eliminate that cunning and vicious little brat.

“Old man! If you’ve set up the ladders, shouldn’t you climb them like a proper warrior?”

Max taunted him again.

He knew that his taunts would boost his allies’ morale and demoralize the enemy.

“You insolent little brat! If you’re a true commander, stop using such cowardly tactics and fight me fair and square!”

Vinchel shouted back.

But,

“Hahaha! A wise man uses the power of others, while a fool only knows how to use his own strength! You’re a fool, old man!”

Max retorted, his tone mocking.

Vinchel’s veins bulged.

“I’ll tear your foul mouth apart!”

He jumped again.

* * *

Fierce battles were also raging at the east, west, and north gates.

Every location was important, but the most intense battle was taking place at the north gate.

It was where the Crown Prince’s army was pushing the hardest.

Why?

Because it was the only place where a siege weapon had survived.

A massive siege tower.

Arrows rained down from the siege tower, which was almost as tall as the castle walls.

And a large number of soldiers from the siege tower had crossed over to the walls and were pushing back the Celtrine forces.

Thanks to that, the Crown Prince’s army had finally secured a foothold at the north gate.

That’s why the pressure at the north gate was on a different level.

“Damn it! Why is this the only place where a siege weapon survived?! What were you doing, Lady Ran? Are you discriminating against us?”

Duncan complained, his face red with frustration.

“Hey, what can I do if we’re out of projectiles? Be grateful that we even have only one left.”

Ran replied from behind, a smug look on her face.

She wasn’t wrong. If it hadn’t been for her and the Turtle Catapult, the siege battle would have been much more difficult.

But human nature was fickle.

“Grateful, my ass!”

“Cheer up, cheer up! I believe in you, red-haired man!”

Ran cheered him on (?) and then retreated to the back.

She wasn’t much help in close combat, so it was a wise decision.

“Argh, seriously!”

Duncan raised his twin axes.

They were the perfect weapons for him, a warrior who relied on brute strength.

But his opponent was Marius, the Black Knight.

He wasn’t as strong as the Sword Saint, but he was still a living legend who had defeated countless strong opponents.

His greatsword deflected Duncan’s axes with ease.

*Clang!*

“Ugh!”

Duncan frowned.

He had been having a streak of bad luck lately.

First the Armored General, and now the Black Knight.

He considered himself a strong warrior, but he felt insignificant compared to these monsters.

“You’re nothing but a brute!”

Marius was about to deliver the finishing blow when,

*Whoosh!*

*Clank!*

Milia’s chain sword flew through the air, wrapping around his greatsword.

The greatsword stopped just before it reached Duncan.

Duncan sighed in relief.

“Phew, good job!”

He immediately seized the opportunity and attacked.

“Don’t get cocky!”

Marius’s greatsword glowed with aura.

Its explosive power repelled the chain sword.

*Clang!*

“…”

Milia frowned and bit her lip as she retrieved her chain sword.

Marius didn’t stop and swung his greatsword at Duncan’s axes again.

“Damn it, seriously!”

Duncan stumbled.

This time, Marius’s aura-clad greatsword was about to deliver the finishing blow.

But,

*Whoosh!*

An orichalcum arrow pierced through the air at the perfect moment.

“Ugh?!”

Marius, startled, hurriedly raised his shield.

*Thud!*

The arrow was so powerful that even though he blocked it with his shield, Marius stumbled backward.

“Damn it, they still have some left?”

Marius’s face hardened.

He could handle those two if it was just them.

But it was troublesome if those monstrous arrows were still in play.

Because one misstep could be fatal.

He couldn’t help but feel frustrated.

“Duncan.”

Milia called out to him.

“What is it? I’m busy.”

“Let’s use the arrows to our advantage.”

She spoke calmly, assessing the situation.

They were outnumbered.

But they could use the orichalcum arrows to their advantage.

“Understood.”

Duncan nodded.

He was a veteran warrior.

He knew what the best course of action was in this situation.

“Hmph, futile.”

Marius unleashed his aura.

“Victory follows the Savior’s path.”

Milia declared, her faith unwavering, like a paladin on a holy crusade.

Even Duncan, her ally, felt a chill run down his spine.

“A-Ahem, don’t worry, I’m normal.”

Her words sounded like a joke to Marius.

“Enough with the nonsense!”

He charged at them like a whirlwind.

The battle at the north gate continued.

* * *

He had fallen clumsily, multiple times.

But Vinchel didn’t give up.

Because climbing the ladder felt like admitting defeat to that brat, Max.

– Old man! If you’ve set up the ladders, shouldn’t you climb them like a proper warrior?

He had been mocked in front of everyone.

There was no way he, the Sword Saint, could use a ladder after that.

He had no idea that Max had said those words precisely to provoke him into doing that.

The more Vinchel, the commander-in-chief, struggled, the higher the Celtrine forces’ morale soared, and the lower the Crown Prince’s army’s morale plummeted.

And the impact of that morale difference was clearly visible on the battlefield.

The Celtrine forces were defending much more fiercely than before.

The Crown Prince’s army’s attacks had weakened.

Their casualties were mounting, and the situation was worsening.

But Vinchel didn’t seem to notice.

He was fixated on Max Celtrine.

It was the effect of Max’s provocations.

Vinchel wasn’t a fool. He knew that.

But a powerful desire was driving him, making him obsess over Max.

He would kill that damn brat.

And once he killed him, the war would be over.

The sweet temptation of ending the war with a single blow.

Even the Sword Saint couldn’t resist it.

He had no idea that Max had planned this all along.

‘You’ve fallen for it, old man.’

The more Vinchel focused on him, the better it was for Max.

The better it was for the Celtrine forces.

If the Sword Saint was free to roam the battlefield, targeting the soldiers, there would be no way to stop him.

That’s what the Sword Saint was.

The Celtrine forces’ casualties would skyrocket.

But Max had successfully lured the dangerous Sword Saint to himself, using himself as bait.

It was possible because the conditions were right.

The three consecutive victories before the all-out attack.

Those victories had humiliated the Sword Saint.

Max had exploited that.

He hadn’t volunteered to handle the Sword Saint just because he was the most dangerous.

‘Humans are slaves to their desires.’

His most hated enemy was right before him.

And if he killed him, the war would practically be over.

Even the Sword Saint couldn’t resist that temptation.

He would keep the Sword Saint occupied while he finished the battle on other fronts.

The Celtrine forces were already gaining the upper hand at the south gate.

“Old man, have you given up? Good! Even I feel guilty about doing something cruel to an old man!”

His tongue was as sharp as his sword.

Even Vinchel had to admit that he was good at provoking people.

“Shut your mouth!”

*Whoosh!*

*Whoosh!*

Vinchel’s swords flew towards him again.

– Form of the Destructive Slash.

*Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!*

Max blocked the Sword Control Technique with the Destructive Slash, the defensive technique with the highest defensive power in the Baker Swordsmanship.

He could block the Sword Control Technique indefinitely at this distance with the Destructive Slash.

It was then that,

“U-Um, Savior… I don’t think you know this, but…”

A resident spoke up hesitantly.

“What is it?”

“We ran out of ballistae arrows a while ago…”

“…”

“…”

“Are you kidding me? Why didn’t you tell me sooner?!”

At that moment,

Vinchel jumped again.

“Wait, wait! Old man! Go back down! I need to prepare!”

“You crazy bastard?”

Vinchel’s swords created footholds.

He stepped on the swords.

And then,

For the first time, Vinchel jumped onto the walls.

“Damn it, I knew this would happen.”

Max unleashed the energy he had been conserving.

“Alright, let’s do this, old man!”